All publications cited herein are incorporated by reference in their entirety to the same extent as if each individual publication or patent application was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference. The following description includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed invention, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
Nuclear stress bodies (NSBs) are a subnuclear structure generated in response to a variety of cellular stressors. Their formation is dependent on the transcription of non-coding Satellite III DNA sequences. Nuclear stress may regulate what genes are expressed in the cell and ultimately contribute to the survival or death of the cell. However, the biological functions of NSBs are not entirely understood. While stress induced events have also been associated with neurological conditions, there is no prior data indicating a role of nuclear stress response in neurological disorders, and there is no knowledge of an RNA binding protein-based nuclear stress response in neurological disorders. NSBs may adversely affect therapeutic interventions, contributing to the challenges in drug development for this class of diseases. Thus, there is a need in the art for an increased understanding of NSBs, as well as the development of novel and effective neurological treatments and therapies in response to cellular stressors.